Join us for the Conference Gala Dinner at the Leiden Botanical Gardens
(Hortus Bontanicus), a botanical celebration right in the heart of
Leiden. Plant species from all over the globe have been cultivated
and studied here for around 400 years, making this the oldest botanical
garden in the Netherlands. Originally founded as a center for research
and learning, it has become an important part of the city's cultural
history, and is a green oasis of tranquility in the middle of the
busy city.
Feel free to wander
through the beautiful gardens before dinner starting at 18:00 hours.
Guided group tours are also available, but you must sign up on the
registration form to show interest. There will be two separate tours
available, one at 18:00 (accommodating 50 people) and one at 18:30
(accommodating 50 people). These tours are complimentary if you sign
up in advance.
Then join us for the Conference Gala Dinner in the Oranjerie Room
featuring Indonesian fare and drinks from 19:30 - 22:00 hours. You
must register for this event by June 6, 2004 on our registration
page in order for proper arrangements, including food and beverages,
to be made (event is limited to 225 participants).
We welcome registered conference attendees ($15) and their guests
($50). (a limited number of guests will
be accommodated and these tickets must be purchased at the time of
registration) If you require a vegetarian meal please be sure to check
that on your registration form.
The Botanical
Garden is within walking distance of the hotels. Click here
to see a map of the location and its proximity to each hotel. Click
here for
a printable flyer!
Highlights
of the Botanical Gardens
Plants from all over the world have been carefully cultivated here
by experts for more than four centuries. The Clusius garden (a reconstruction),
the 18th century Orangery with its monumental tub plants, the rare
collection of historical trees hundreds of years old, the Japanese
Von Siebold Memorial Garden symbolizing the historical link between
East and West, the tropical greenhouses with their world class plant
collections, and the central square and Conservatory exhibiting exotic
plants from South Africa and southern Europe. There is also a shop
and a café.
A walk through the garden takes the visitor through a variety of climates,
from cold and humid to oppressive tropical heat. It is a voyage of
discovery through the kingdom of plant life. There are arum from Sumatra,
carnivorous plants from Borneo, orchids and passion flowers, bananas,
rice, cocoa, coffee, laburnum and swamp cypress. But the jewel in
the crown of the greenhouses is the giant Victoria Amazonica water
lily.
